Rockets Say ‘Thank You’ To Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard is back in Houston — this time as a member of the Atlanta Hawks.

As Howard made his first return Thursday night since leaving the Rockets as a free agent in the summer of 2016, the Rockets paid tribute to him with a ‘Thank You’ video that they aired in the first quarter.

Howard was initially received by the crowd with a mixture of cheers and boos as he was introduced. Those boos grew louder early on as Howard threw down four slams in the first four minutes of the game. But when the tribute video aired, there was some nice applause as Howard acknowledged the crowd.

I’m firmly of the opinion that Dwight deserves applause, despite the painful 2015-16 season, Dwight’s last with the team. This was a superstar who left a glamour city to come here and join forces with James Harden. He represented the city well, always willing to get involved in the community. He also was the team’s best playoff performer while here and, frankly, I don’t think it was that close.

But that final season left a sour taste with some. Harden and Howard never seemed to be on the same page and the egos of both players definitely played a role.